Week Four, Response Four: "Man Blindly Following GPS Drives Jeep Into Icy Lake"
INSTRUCTIONS: Before you begin, please read this short article from NDTV: "US Driver Following GPS Plunges into Lake Champlain" by Agence France-Presse Once you've finished, read the following commentary and follow the Blogger instructions found on Cobra to post a comment answering the questions in the final paragraph. You should also comment on at least one of your classmate's replies. Please let me know if you have any questions, concerns, or difficulties posting.
The past couple of weeks, we've read several articles that give us an insight into where technology is going next. In the article for this week, however, a man found out exactly how flawed technology can be when he drove his friend's Jeep Compass into Lake Champlain because that's where his GPS told him to go. We could argue for hours about whether or not someone should be allowed to drive if they blindly follow their GPS wherever it takes them, but the meat of this story is that the app itself failed.
This isn't a one-time event either. If you search the web, several stories emerge about GPS apps rerouting individuals in ways that could have ended dangerously. And then there are those instances where GPS doesn't know where it's going at all.
I lived in Dallas, TX over the summer last year, and at the time, the city had recently completed several road projects leading into the downtown area. Because exits had been changed and roads had been expanded and rerouted, my GPS had no idea how to get me from Point A to Point B. Here I am, flying down the road in a 6,000-pound steel box, and my GPS decides to play the "recalculating" game as soon as I come across what was supposed to be my exit.
But it's not just city improvements that freak our apps out. I mentioned the first day of class that I grew up on a farm in southern Illinois. The town nearest to my parents' home has a population for approximately 350, and my graduating class was roughly 30 students. My parents live several miles out of town on a gravel road that only recently received a street address rather than a "Rural Route." Despite being given an address, GPS is still unable to decipher where someone needs to go to get to our house. If you type in our address, it takes you two towns over, which is nearly 40 minutes away. With all the talk about self-driving, GPS-driven vehicles making headlines, you'd think we'd have these kinks worked out in a mobile app.
So what do you think? Should we trust automobile companies to deliver us safe vehicles with strong, error-proof technology? Or is the problem with GPS systems? How would you approach the idea of selling your current vehicle for an autonomous one? Who is to blame when an autonomous car crashes: the car company, the technology, the GPS system, or the owner of the car?
The past couple of weeks, we've read several articles that give us an insight into where technology is going next. In the article for this week, however, a man found out exactly how flawed technology can be when he drove his friend's Jeep Compass into Lake Champlain because that's where his GPS told him to go. We could argue for hours about whether or not someone should be allowed to drive if they blindly follow their GPS wherever it takes them, but the meat of this story is that the app itself failed.
This isn't a one-time event either. If you search the web, several stories emerge about GPS apps rerouting individuals in ways that could have ended dangerously. And then there are those instances where GPS doesn't know where it's going at all.
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| IMAGE: Road sign reads: "NOT A THRU ROAD. YOUR GPS IS WRONG! DEAD END" |
I lived in Dallas, TX over the summer last year, and at the time, the city had recently completed several road projects leading into the downtown area. Because exits had been changed and roads had been expanded and rerouted, my GPS had no idea how to get me from Point A to Point B. Here I am, flying down the road in a 6,000-pound steel box, and my GPS decides to play the "recalculating" game as soon as I come across what was supposed to be my exit.
But it's not just city improvements that freak our apps out. I mentioned the first day of class that I grew up on a farm in southern Illinois. The town nearest to my parents' home has a population for approximately 350, and my graduating class was roughly 30 students. My parents live several miles out of town on a gravel road that only recently received a street address rather than a "Rural Route." Despite being given an address, GPS is still unable to decipher where someone needs to go to get to our house. If you type in our address, it takes you two towns over, which is nearly 40 minutes away. With all the talk about self-driving, GPS-driven vehicles making headlines, you'd think we'd have these kinks worked out in a mobile app.
So what do you think? Should we trust automobile companies to deliver us safe vehicles with strong, error-proof technology? Or is the problem with GPS systems? How would you approach the idea of selling your current vehicle for an autonomous one? Who is to blame when an autonomous car crashes: the car company, the technology, the GPS system, or the owner of the car?
We rely too much on GPS devices and have lost the art of reading an atlas! But I am the first to admit I use my GPS all the time. I had a recent experience where we were going to an away basketball game for my daughter when the worst thing ever happened! NO INTERNET SERVICE. And when you are using a GPS this is NOT good. Luckily, I have a decent sense of direction and we were able to find the school we were looking for. This brought up and important conversation between my teenage daughter and myself about what to do when your GPS fails you. I defiantly think I will stick with my human guided car for now! I’m not sure who would be to blame. I would think it would ultimately come down to the human factor of the person driving is responsible for all things at the end of the day.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree.. worse comes to worst, what if you were on a road trip and all of the phones have died, gps has died, and whatever else you can use to decipher where you are going... most people today have no idea how to use an Atlas , or even what it is.
DeleteI agree with you totally that we as human drivers should take responsibility for any actions that happen on the road. We should be able to read maps because this is the first way we had to travel before GPS was invented and I believe this should be continued because when traveling, GPS is not always available.
DeleteWe should be able to rely on GPS, especially if we are unfamiliar with the area we are traveling. Blindly following the GPS off a bridge is not anything but human error. If you happened to be driving down a road you were unfamiliar with, people should be traveling at a safe speed to not go off the road. Driving off a dock really should not be blamed on a GPS failure. Even though the app told the driver to take the rout, drivers should be using caution while driving just as they always would. The concern is valid about GPS being buggy and problematic in rural areas when it comes to self-driving cars. The technology is not perfect and may not be. It may be up to the manufacturers to work around these limitations with use of cameras or other technology.
ReplyDeleteI agree about not following blindly! There must be some common sense involved here.
DeleteI totally agree you should not choose technology over your own judgement. If your gps says you should drive in a lake to get somewhere quicker does not mean you should actually do it.
DeleteI agree that we should be able to trust our GPS and about the human error. It is funny to think people will do something like drive into a lake because their GPS told them so but at the same time it is kind of scary to think people are relying that much on the GPS. I think we need to make sure that even though we use the technology often we keep some common sense aside for when it is not working correctly.
DeleteI believe Gps are a very helpful tool. Gps allows people explore around the world and experience new memories and new sights. I do believe people need common sense. Gps are made by humans so they will have flaws so you should not totally rely on GPS.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you no-one should totally rely on GPS. They should be able to find a different route without the GPS and it's annoying recalculating signals.
DeleteI agree with you that GPS can be a great tool for any type of trip. It is very easy to use and anyone with a smartphone has access to it. GPS are almost always right but when they are not I think humans should realize this and use common sense to observe their surroundings. I think there are some problems with GPS, but overall the positives and consistency of it highly outweighs the infrequent problems in my opinion.
DeleteI think we are becoming way too comfortable with technology in all honesty. I get it, it is fun to use and it gives us so much. Yet at the same time were going to sit in a car and just hope it brings us to the right place? I think we could add aspects of something like that but not let a car become completely able to drive us to our locations. There are recalls on thousands of vehicles from all companies every year. I personally do not want to find out about a recall on self driving cars, it is just nerve wrecking to think we are coming onto this idea and soon putting it into action. I like the technology just do not think we should fully trust it. Like it was stated, if we cannot figure out a mobile app why put it into our cars and let them drive us instead of vice versa?
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with you. We are losing common sense and just blindly following the guidance of a computer run object which cannot always account for certain circumstances... Such as a lake and not to drive into it.
DeleteSo true! A lot of people are losing common sense and are relying on technology to take us places. When they really need to use the common sense to know their surroundings.
DeleteIm honestly a little dumbfounded with this one. Yes, GPS is great and has improved they ways in which we are able to get from point A to B, yet we still have to use common sense while using it. I think that theres a chance that some people just aren't qualified to be behind the wheel of a car, because who actually sees a lake and says "yeah this should be fine, the GPS is never wrong!". No one in the right state of mind is what I'm thinking. There is the fact that we are getting very comfortable with technology, thus affecting the way our minds think and the trust we have with our beloved inanimate objects, but we as humans still have common sense, or I think that we should still have that. The GPS is not to blame, the driver was.
ReplyDeleteI am so with you on this! Who decides to go ahead and drive into a lake simply because that is where the GPS sent them? So if the GPS tells you there is a road going through a cemetery, and you can clearly see that you would take out several headstones, are you going to keep going? I would like to think not!
DeleteWhen following a GPS you have to be smart about it and if there isn't a road don't turn, but I personally am horrible with directions and could not get anywhere with out mine. You have to use common sense though and realize that GPS or any technology is just code and numbers that sometimes contain human error and therefore is not always accurate.
ReplyDeleteI feel like you nailed it with "technology is just code and numbers that sometimes contain human error..." That is something we humans need to keep in mind. I understand that you and many others rely completely on GPS to find a certain location, but I think people should still learn to read maps. What if the GPS crashes or all computers go down? Will you still be able to find your way?
DeleteWhile I agree that GPS is a very handy tool to have, I fully believe in paying attention. People have become too dependent on technology and don't realize anymore that technology doesn't do everything for you. You can't just punch in an address into your GPS and expect your car to take you to that address...you have to ACTUALLY watch where you are going! You should always be aware of your surroundings and know what is in front of you. I know the article says the weather conditions weren't exactly favorable, but come on! This article only provides further proof of how important it is to PAY ATTENTION. I can only shake my head in disappointment in how dependent society has become on computers.
ReplyDeleteI sometimes rely on the GPS, but I'm always aware of my driving. The driver could have realized that they something was off. GPS are not always right so by always relying on a technology to take you somewhere is not the best thing. Some people have common sense but don't use it, and this sounds like one of those situations.
ReplyDeleteIm still confused on how the hell he managed to do that... How are you so dependent on technology that u follow the GPS into the FREAKING LAKE! I understand that it was foggy and humid, but could you not feel the difference between the road and dock? Even if you had no idea where you were, you could see a lake and make a smart decision and say "well there's a lake let me turn this way so my GPS can reroute". But thats common sense that some people just clearly do not have.
ReplyDeleteI think that we should trust them when we are not in a town that is near a lake or is under construction. Because if we do not know our way around that city GPS is the only way to go if you do not have a map on hand of where you are visiting. The problem is not with the GPS technology it is with the people who made it . They do not now every construction that is going on all over the world so how can they compute for different routs. I would not have the money to buy a high-tech car. The owner of the car is to blame because you should be watching the road and not the GPS system.
ReplyDeleteLucas Miles,
ReplyDeleteI think in general GPS is a very helpful tool that is almost always correct. I personally have never had any trouble with my GPS in my phone and that is the only one that I have ever used. I think we should trust these companies because they are very accurate with their data and the software is only going to improve. I think there are some problems and bugs that happen to GPS and they are the stories that get attention because they are interesting such as the article about the guy driving into the river. I still do not understand how you can drive onto a river without noticing. If the technology gets to a point were I am comfortable with a self driving car than I would absolutely switch out my old car. I think there would be a far less chance of a crash because I have awful depth perception and constantly have to slam my brakes so I would feel more at ease driving. Not to mention that I could do other things in the car such as homework or I am on my phone. If the car where to get into a crash I would put the blame on the companies because the person has no control of the car so it should be there fault. This is why I think companies will work so hard to make sure that the driving software is as perfect as they can make them. In an ideal future I would like to see everyone have self driving cars because there would almost never be a crash, since there would be no human error or poor judgment. Also the amount of drunk drivers would be drastically diminished so the roads would be a much safer place.
Freddie Gordon: Comment Blog 4
ReplyDeleteI feel as drivers we should use common sense when using assisted technology. We should not be totally reliant on this software because it is still being tested. I also think map reading or atlas reading in classroom should still be given to students so that they can still navigate to their destinations if GPS fails. As a driver, you should always be aware of your surroundings. I do not understand how this driver could not see that the GPS was navigating him into the lake of water.